Something Seriously Bad is Plaguing Putin's War Machine Pyotr Kurzin

[TexasTowelie]

Something seriously bad is plaguing Putin's war in Ukraine. Russia has always had inconceivable war losses. So this isn’t a story about Russian advances. It’s a story about that cost — and about a strategy that’s starting to look self-defeating.

Russia is still moving forward in Ukraine, but only just. Gains are measured in metres, not breakthroughs, while casualties are piling up at a rate unseen in modern European warfare. The paradox at the centre of Putin’s war is simple: the more ground Russia takes, the more its army is being hollowed out.

Look past the headlines and the numbers are brutal. Losses on both sides are approaching historic extremes, with Russian casualties now dwarfing those of past conflicts. What was meant to be a war Russia could outlast has become a grinding test of manpower, tolerance, and political endurance.

That isn’t bad luck. It’s how the war is now being fought. Drone saturation and constant surveillance mean wounded soldiers are rarely recoverable, and even small advances carry disproportionate human costs. Russia has adapted tactically — preserving equipment by sacrificing people.

The strain is now feeding back into recruitment. Moscow is still hitting its targets, but only by lowering standards, expanding coercion, and throwing more money at the problem. Desertion is rising. Recruitment quality is falling. Regional budgets are starting to creak.

And that matters because this war isn’t just being fought on the front line.

It’s being fought in Russia’s labor force, its finances, and its long-term capacity to keep absorbing losses without breaking itself in the process. Ukraine faces brutal limits of its own, but Russia’s population advantage is proving far less decisive than expected when the price of each meter keeps rising.

So this episode looks at what Russia’s war of attrition is actually delivering — and what it isn’t. Why endurance doesn’t automatically translate into advantage, why movement can disguise exhaustion, and why the real question may no longer be who can advance, but who can afford to keep going.